Scottish skin cancer survival rates hit all-time high

SKIN cancer survival rates are at their highest in history, despite record numbers of people now being diagnosed with the disease.

Caroline Begg was diagnosed with malignant melanoma at the age of 26 after years of using sunbeds [PA]

Scotland’s obsession with designer tans and sunshine holidays has seen cases rise more than 450 per cent since the 1970s.

Malignant melanoma is one of the most dangerous forms of skin cancer, with nearly 13,000 cases diagnosed each year in the UK.

In Scotland there are, on average, 1,200 new case each year – equivalent to more than three a day – compared with around 190 in the 1970s.

But latest figures published today show the war on the killer condition is being won due to better treatment and early diagnosis. Despite a seven-fold increase in the most serious form of skin cancer in 40 years, eight in 10 sufferers are now surviving.

Experts blame the alarming rise on Scots’ addiction to sunbeds and foreign holidays.

Lisa Adams, of Cancer Research UK Scotland, said: “We know overexposure to UV rays from the sun or sunbeds is the main cause of skin cancer.

“This means, in many cases, the disease can be prevented. Sadly more and more people in Scotland are being diagnosed with malignant melanoma. But the good news is survival is amongst the highest for any cancer.”

Better detection is also responsible for increasing rates.

Skin cancer diagnosis is particularly high among the millions of pasty holidaymakers desperately seeking a “must-have” bronze tan, which dermatologists say is often only “achieved” after they endure sunburn.

Those most at risk are people with pale skin, moles or freckles, a history of sunburn or a family history of the disease.

Mother-of-three Caroline Begg, from Glasgow, was diagnosed with malignant melanoma at 26 after using sunbeds. The receptionist, who has pale skin and freckles, visited her GP after a mole appeared on her back.

I have a large scar on my back but that’s nothing compared with what could have happened. I could have ended up not being able to have children. I could have died

Caroline Begg

Ms Begg, 34, said: “I have a large scar on my back but that’s nothing compared with what could have happened. I could have ended up not being able to have children. I could have died.”

Chloe Cowan, a Cancer Research UK nurse based at the Beatson Cancer Centre in Glasgow, said: “Sunburn is a clear sign that the DNA in your skin cells has been damaged and, over time, this can lead to skin cancer. When the sun is strong, pop on a T-shirt, and use a sunscreen with at least SPF15.”

Each year, almost 350,000 people receive the grim news they have cancer – a rise of nearly 50,000 in a decade. But survival has doubled in the past 40 years thanks to improvements in diagnosis and treatment.

Around 295 in every 100,000 people were diagnosed with the disease in 1975. In 2011 this had leapt to almost 400 per 100,000, partly due to lifestyle factors.

In the 1970s, just 23 per cent of cancer patients survived for 10 years.